Always
by AnHonoraryWeasley
Summary: Teddy promised Ron he'd always be there for Rose. Keeping that promise turned out to be a little harder than he expected.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Everything you recognize in this story from the Harry Potter series belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling**

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 1<span>

Standing in a hallway of St. Mungo's, eight-year-old Teddy Lupin decided had never been more excited for anything in his life, even when Uncle Harry had taken him to the Quidditch World Cup. For nearly seven months, he had been anxiously awaiting Ron and Hermione's baby to be born. There were already a bunch of babies in the family: Victoire (though she was five, she was still basically a baby), Dominique, Louis, Freddie, Roxy, and James. Not to mention Sean and Connor Wood, Adam Jordan, Callum and Teagan Finnigan, and Xavier and Miranda Thomas.

Teddy didn't really like most of the babies though, except for James, who he considered to be his younger brother. Teddy preferred to play with his mates from the Muggle primary school he went to or his best mate, Randy Shacklebolt, because they could run and talk and play better than the babies.

But Teddy just knew this baby would be different, because it would be Ron and Hermione's baby. Ron and Hermione were his favorite grown-ups in the whole world, besides Grandmum, Uncle Harry, and Aunt Ginny. Hermione was very nice and smart and pretty and liked to take Teddy to the cinema or the zoo when she wasn't working. Ron was funny and cool and would take Teddy on broomstick rides when Grandmum wasn't around. Also, they used to know his Mum and Dad, before they had died fighting bad guys, and would tell him all kinds of stories about them.

Teddy really hoped it would be a boy, so he could teach him about Quidditch and go to play at Ron and Hermione's house all the time. He didn't really like Victoire or Dominique that much, and they were the only Weasley girls that he could play with (Roxy was too little for Teddy to really think about much), so he figured a boy like James or Freddie would be more fun.

When Grandmum had woken him up this morning, Teddy had been grumpy at first, but when she told him Hermione had the baby he jumped out of bed and ran straight for the Floo.

"Not yet, Teddy," Grandmum had told him, laughing. "Hermione and the baby have too many visitors right now, so we'll go a little later in the day."

That was over five hours ago and Teddy and Grandmum were only just getting to see them. Grandmum stopped in front of one of the doors and motioned for him to knock, which he did softly, since he knew that babies didn't usually like loud noises. The door opened and he looked up to see Ron grinning at them.

"Hi Teddy, Andromeda," Ron said, his grin getting bigger. "Would you like to meet my daughter?"

"It's a girl?" Teddy asked feeling slightly disappointed.

"Of course we would," Grandmum said, pushing Teddy in the room slightly.

Teddy walked in and saw Hermione sitting up on a bed and holding a tiny little bundle in her arms. She looked very tired, but she looked pretty as always and was smiling kindly at him. Teddy suddenly felt a little nervous, since he'd never visited a baby in the hospital before, so Grandmum walked in front of him to give Hermione a kiss on the cheek.

"She is absolutely beautiful," Grandmum said, looking down at the baby.

"Takes after her mum that way," Ron said, smiling as he sat down on the bed next to Hermione.

Hermione looked at Teddy and smiled. "Hello, Teddy. Would you like to meet Rose Weasley?" she asked.

Teddy nodded and walked over to the side of the bed. He looked up at Ron and Hermione, who were both smiling at him, before looking down at the baby. Rose Weasley was the tiniest thing he had ever seen. Her eyes were closed and she had chubby cheeks and the smallest nose in the world. Teddy wasn't usually one for babies, but he was sure Rose was the prettiest baby there ever was.

"Would you like to hold her?" Hermione asked him.

Teddy nodded, not taking his eyes off of Rose. Ron got up off the bed and gently took Rose out of her arms.

"Sit down in this chair and hold your arms out like this," Grandmum told him, demonstrating it to him.

He mirrored her arm movements and Uncle Ron crouched down to place Rose in his arms. Teddy took a while just to look at her before looking up to find the three adults giving him affectionate looks.

"She's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," Teddy told them seriously. "What's her middle name?"

"Nymphadora," Ron answered, still crouched in front of Teddy and Rose.

Teddy looked from Ron to Hermione, whom were both smiling at him, and then to Grandmum, who was dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. He wasn't exactly sure how to feel about this.

"That's my Mum's name," he said softly.

"Your mum was our friend and we loved her dearly," Hermione said quietly. "Is that okay with you, Teddy?"

Teddy nodded, not sure he would be able to speak. Teddy couldn't remember Mum and Dad at all and sometimes he missed them so much it almost physically hurt. Grandmum had a bunch of pictures of Mum and Dad and Teddy liked to look through all of them and all the Weasley's had a bunch of stories to tell him about his Mum and Dad. He talked to Uncle Harry sometimes when he got sad, because Uncle Harry's parents were killed when he was a baby too, but Teddy knew he was lucky because he had a lot of friends who were like family, and Uncle Harry only had some mean relatives to live with.

Grandmum and Hermione started stalking about something and Teddy went back to looking down at beautiful little Rose. After a while, Ron cleared his throat, causing Teddy to look up at him curiously.

"Can you promise me something, Teddy?" Ron asked him quietly, so that Hermione and Grandmum wouldn't be able to hear. When Teddy nodded, he continued. "I want you to promise that you will always look after Rosie and that you'll try your hardest to not let anything bad happen to her. I'll be trying too, but I think I'll need some help. Are you up for the job?"

"Yes," Teddy said, looking straight at Ron. "I promise. I love her."

* * *

><p><strong>Hello, wonderful readers. So I'm a little out of my element with this pairing and I am a definite ScorpiusRose shipper most of the time, but this seems to have potential. Try to hang in there with me and I'd love to get reviews from you!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_August 31st, 2017_

"I know your secret," Rose said, leaning across the table with a smirk on her face.

Teddy raised an eyebrow at the eleven-year-old (nearly twelve, he reminded himself) sitting across from him. She smiled sweetly at him in return, causing him to chuckle.

"What do you know?" Teddy asked her, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms.

"I'll tell you only if you pay for my ice cream today," she told him, giving him that angelic smile that he (and every other Weasley male) was a sucker for.

Teddy gave a mock sigh of frustration and rolled his eyes, but smiled anyway. "Fine. So, what secret of mine do you know?"

"You fancy Victoire," Rose said, smiling smugly.

Teddy's jaw dropped. He had indeed been fancying Vic for a while now, but he was convinced she didn't see him as anything more than a friend or older cousin. Since he didn't want the whole family to know, he'd only told a few of his best friends, but that was it. He thought he had been keeping it a pretty damn good secret, but apparently not.

"How the hell did you figure that one out, Rose?" Teddy asked, dumbfounded.

She shook her head. "Ice cream first, answers later."

Teddy rolled his eyes but got up to order their ice cream anyways. Since he was about fourteen and Rose was six, it was their tradition to get Florean Fortescue's whenever they could. Usually Teddy would ask her how her school was going and then she would ask question after question about Hogwarts, but today was a bit different. Tomorrow, Rose would be heading off on the Hogwarts Express to start her first year. Teddy knew she'd do brilliantly, but he was still a bit nervous for her.

He ordered their ice cream (a Butterbeer sundae for him and two scoops of Chocolate Frog for her) and then brought their ice cream back to the table. Rose thanked him and they ate in silence for a while. Teddy's mind was still racing and he hoped no one else had noticed his newfound feelings for Victoire.

"It wasn't obvious, you know," Rose said, finally breaking the silence. "It took a while for me to figure it out and I'm positive no one else noticed."

"What gave it away?"

Teddy chuckled slightly at the exasperated look he received in response, as Rose looked like a complete miniature of Hermione, save for their differences in hair and eye color.

"Honestly, Teddy. I know you better than anyone. You stare at her when you think no one is looking and you laugh at all of her jokes that aren't funny. That's how Connor Wood and a few boys at school act around me and I know that they fancy me," she said matter-of-factly.

Teddy shook his head in amazement. Everyone thought Rose was pretty as a picture, but she was only eleven (nearly twelve, he reminded himself) and that's too bloody young to be receiving attention from boys. The picture of an irate, overprotective Ron flitted across Teddy's mind and he couldn't help but chuckle slightly.

"I think you should tell her," Rose continued in a slightly bossy tone. "I'm pretty sure that she fancies you back."

"What makes you say that?" Teddy asked, trying not to get too excited over the news.

"Vic flips her hair a lot more when you're around and she told me once that she only flips her hair when she's flirts with someone," Rose replied, smiling slightly

Teddy wanted to make a comment about how Rose was too young to know what flirting was, but though better of it; he knew Rose well enough to know she'd go off on a tirade about how she wasn't a baby. Instead, Teddy considered Rose's words carefully as he ate his ice cream.

Vic and Teddy hadn't really gotten on well together when they were growing up, as Vic just wanted to play with dolls or follow Teddy around and Teddy found her annoying when he was trying to play Quidditch with his friends. By the time Vic was a fourth year and Teddy was in sixth, she had stopped following him around all the time and Teddy began to find her more appealing. She was smart and beautiful and witty, but totally off-limits. But if she fancied him back, that would change everything.

They ate their ice cream in silence for a while before Rose set down her spoon and looked at Teddy with a worried expression on her face.

"What's wrong, Rose?" he asked, frowning.

"What if I don't make any friends? What if I fail out of all my classes and have to go home? What if the Sorting Hat tells me that I don't fit into any of the houses? What if my roommates hate me? I'll be forced to live with them for seven years! What if one of the Acromantula that lives in the Forbidden Forest eats me? What if I'm the only one who gets homesick and everyone makes fun of me for being a baby? What if—"

Teddy stared at Rose in shock as she kept talking, looking close to tears. For the past few days, everyone in the Weasley extended family and friends had been showing nothing but support for the kids going to Hogwarts for the first time this year: Rose, Al, and Declan Finnigan. The three of them had been inseparable as of late and talked constantly about how excited they were to finally be going to Hogwarts. Teddy had no clue Rose was so nervous about it.

She didn't need to be at all. Teddy had never met anyone as kind and sweet and brilliant and funny. She stuck up for people who were being made fun of and had a smile for everyone. She'd love Hogwarts and everyone in Hogwarts would love her; Teddy could just feel it.

"Rose," he said, interrupting her. "You are going to love Hogwarts. You're going to do well in all your classes and make friends with everyone. And no matter what, we're all still going to love you, so stop worrying about it so much."

Rose bit her lip, not looking convinced. "But how do you know?" she asked in a small voice.

"Because it's me, Rose," Teddy said, smiling softly at her. "I know you better than anyone. Plus, you'll have Al and Declan in your classes and Vic, Dom, Louis, James, Freddie, Roxy, Sean, Connor, Adam, Callum, Teagan, and Miranda there if you need them. Hell, you'll know half the school already."

Rose finally smiled a little as she pushed her bowl of ice cream away from her a bit. Teddy took it as a sign to leave and he stood up, leaving a couple of Knuts on the table. As they walked down Diagon Alley together, Teddy wrapped his arm around Rose's shoulder.

She looked up at him and smiled a little brighter. "Thanks for that Teddy," she said. "You'll be at the platform tomorrow, right?"

"I wouldn't miss it for anything," Teddy said honestly.

"Good. I don't think I could do it without you."

They walked into the Leaky Cauldron and smiled at the barkeeper as they reached the fireplace. Rose took a handful and walked into the fireplace, grinning.

"Tell her tomorrow," Rose told him. "Or just snog her. Either way you'll get a response."

Before Teddy had time to respond, Rose winked at him and yelled "The Den!" and disappeared before his eyes.

Hm. Maybe he'd have to take Rose's love advice. Even if she is eleven (nearly twelve).

* * *

><p><em>September 1st, 2017<em>

Teddy couldn't wipe the grin off his face. Not only did Vic tell him that she fancied him back, but she snogged the hell out of him and then told him she'd owl him about the first Hogsmeade date.

The train's whistle blew and Teddy swore. He had meant to go see James, Rose, and Al onto the train but he must've been snogging Vic longer than he thought. He spotted Ron quickly, since he was about a foot taller than the majority of the crowd and ran over, pushing and elbowing his way through the crowd. The train started to move and Teddy swore again.

"Teddy!"

He looked down the train and saw Rose's smiling but slightly anxious face sticking out of a window. As he ran over and got a closer look, he saw Al standing next to her, waving goodbye to the family. Rose grinned bigger as Teddy got closer.

"Write to me, Rosie," Teddy half-yelled over the noise of the train as he walked beside it.

"Of course!" she replied. "I'll miss you terribly."

"Have a wonderful time! Be safe! I'll see you at Christmas!" Teddy said, feeling a pang in his chest.

"Love you, Teddy!" Rose yelled out the window before the train sped away.

He watched as the train rolled away, feeling a whole bunch of things at the same time. On the one hand, he was ecstatic that Vic fancied him too and that they had snogged. However, watching Rose leave had hurt more than he thought it would. She'd do wonderful at Hogwarts but he'd miss the kid like hell.

Sighing, Teddy walked over to Uncle Harry, Aunt Ginny, Hermione, Ron, Lily, and Hugo. Aunt Ginny and Hermione both had tears in their eyes and Harry and Ron looked sad too. They each gave him a sad smile, while Lily and Hugo grinned at him.

"Would you like to join us for lunch, Teddy?" Hermione asked as Ron wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Sure," he said, the pain in his chest lessening a bit.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

June 19th, 2020

Teddy knew from the second he saw him that Tommy McNabb was bad news.

Everything about Tommy McNabb rubbed Teddy the wrong way. His hair was too carelessly perfect. He had an annoying swagger to his walk. His smile was a little too charming. And his hand was _way_ too low on Rose's waist.

"So," Teddy said, glaring at Tommy's hand, "how long have you two been seeing each other?"

"About four months," Tommy answered, smiling down at Rose affectionately.

Teddy scowled. "Four months? I'm surprised I didn't hear about it sooner."

Rose sent Teddy a warning glare before smiling sweetly up at Tommy. "Tommy, why don't you go say hello to your parents? You haven't even been to see them yet."

"Okay, Rosie," Tommy replied, leaning down to kiss her on the cheek. He smiled at Teddy. "Nice you meet you, mate."

Teddy grunted noncommittally. Rose _hated_ when most people called her Rosie, even though practically everyone insisted on it, so why the hell was this kid allowed to call her that? She only let Ron, Hugo, Harry, Al, and Teddy call her that and if anyone else did, she usually bit their head off. Rose turned on Teddy the second Tommy was out of hearing range.

"Way to be nice, Teddy," Rose said sarcastically.

Teddy rolled his eyes. "Oh, don't make me out to be the bad guy," he shot back. "You had a bloody boyfriend for four bloody months and you didn't even bother to send an owl? And now that we're talking about it, you are much too young for a boyfriend."

"I'm fifteen, Teddy Lupin," Rose retorted, her eyes narrowing. "And as I happen to remember, you got your first girlfriend at fourteen. That seems a bit hypocritical, don't you think?"

Teddy chose to ignore this statement. Their situations couldn't have been more different. He had been a stupid fourth year whose friends dared him to ask out a girl in his year, but they ended up rarely speaking to each other and only ever had one awkward snog. Rose, on the other hand, was a vulnerable fourth year who was obviously ripe pickings for this sixth year bloke.

"Still, you should have told me," Teddy said, perfectly fine with the fact that he sounded like a stroppy teenage girl.

"Yeah," Rose snorted. "I can imagine how that owl would've sounded. '_Rose, __break __up __with __this __bloke __immediately. __I __already __don__'__t __like __him_.' On second thought, it wouldn't be an owl; it'd be a Howler."

Teddy rolled his eyes and made to turn around, but Rose stood in front of him and looked at him seriously.

"I really like him, Teddy," she said quietly. "I know you have to be protective of me because you're practically family, but I know what I'm doing. Everybody else doesn't like this already; Dad and Hugo have already thrown fits and James and Freddie keep pranking Tommy. I need you on my side, Teddy."

Teddy sighed, unsure of what to do. On the one hand, he really did want to trust Rose's judgment because Rose was a bright girl who really wanted his support. On the other hand, Rose could be a little too trusting of others for her own good and Tommy McNabb seemed like the type of bloke who would use that weakness to get into her knickers. Rose was _way_ too young to shag Tommy McNabb, or any other bloke for that matter.

_Maybe __there__'__s __a __way __to __have __both_, Teddy thought.

"I do trust you," Teddy said slowly, trying to figure out how to say it best. "I just don't know Tommy McNabb well enough to trust him just yet. I'll be supportive for now, but I reserve the right to curse him if he hurts you."

Rose grinned and threw her arms around his neck. "Thanks, Teddy! Now I just need to convince Dad of the same thing."

Teddy looked over at Ron, who was steadily glaring at Tommy McNabb with his arms crossed threateningly. Nope, Teddy didn't think that Ron would _ever_ be convinced to like Tommy McNabb.

"So now I need to hear more about you, Teddy," Rose said as they walked over to the rest of the Weasley family. "How are things with Victoire?"

Teddy grimaced. This was the one question he was rather keen on avoiding. How _were_ things with Vic? On the one hand, Teddy was rather happy. He loved Victoire and he was one lucky bastard to have a girl that gorgeous love him back. However, lately Vic was acting a little…barmy. It had just started suddenly one day, but Vic acted jealous _all __the __bloody __time_. If he said hello to a waitress, she'd fume for hours. Once he had the gall (or stupidity) to hug one of his old friends from Hogwarts and Vic had accused him of having an affair with the girl. He still loved Victoire but if she got any more mental he wasn't sure he would keep his sanity.

But he couldn't let Rose know that. She'd get that knowing look on her face and demand that he made a decision immediately; Teddy just wasn't ready for that.

"Things are just peachy," Teddy lied, grinning as widely as he could. "Come on, love. I haven't seen the Potters in ages."

* * *

><p>August 17th, 2020<p>

It should've been just him and Rose in Diagon Alley today, Teddy thought bitterly. He wasn't sure how it turned from a "Rose and Teddy get ice cream" day to an "all the bloody Weasleys and friends get ice cream" day. He glanced around at the large group of people around him and sighed.

First to hop on board had been Victoire, even though neither Teddy nor Rose invited her. Then Tommy bloody McNabb declared he already needed to go to Diagon Alley, so that he should tag along too; Teddy _knew_ he was lying but it convinced Rose well enough. Then the rest of the Weasley cousins heard about it and invited themselves along and then they in turn invited _their_ friends. Now instead of just Teddy and Rose, there were twenty freaking people with them.

And things were just getting worse and worse as they day went on.

"Isn't that dress just _lovely_, Teddy?" Vic said, hanging off Teddy's arm.

Teddy glanced over at the store window and felt his blood run cold. That wasn't just any old dress. It was a bloody _wedding_ dress. Teddy glanced over at Rose in a panic, but she was too busy laughing at something that Tommy bloody McNabb had said. Teddy scowled.

"Yeah. It's…er—nice, I guess," Teddy said grudgingly, praying that she'd drop it.

"I'd like to go inside that store," Victoire declared, stopping in the middle of the street. She turned to face Dominique, who was walking with her best friend Miranda Thomas and her boyfriend Sean Wood. "Dom, let's go look at wedding dresses."

Teddy watched as Sean's facial expression morphed into one of horror, which he was sure was the same look he had right now. They looked at each other in panic as Vic, Miranda, and Dom giggled.

"Teddy, you stay out here," Vic said, giving him a suggestive look. "You can't see me in a wedding dress."

With that, she flounced off into the store with Dom and Miranda on her heels. Roxy and Teagan Finnigan followed them in also, leaving Rose and all the guys outside. Teddy's mind started racing a mile a minute.

Did Vic _really_ think they were going to get married? He hadn't even thought about it before. The idea really wasn't as appealing as he thought it might have been; thinking about it actually made him slightly nauseous.

Rose gave him a significant look before turning to the rest of the group. "How about we go check out Quality Quidditch Supplies?" she suggested. "I'm sure you blokes are dying to see the new Thunderbolt broom."

"You sure you don't want to go with the other girls, Rosie?" Tommy asked hesitantly as the rest of the group agreed heartily with Rose.

Teddy snorted, barely containing his disgust. Every second Teddy spent around Tommy McNabb made Teddy like him less and less. Sure, Rose seemed to like the kid a lot, but that didn't mean Teddy had to like him.

"I'm good," Rose said, smiling. "As much as I like shopping and pretty dresses, I really don't need a wedding dress anytime soon. And I'd really like to go see the Thunderbolt too."

Tommy grinned at Rose. "Merlin, I have the best girlfriend ever," he said, smiling like an idiot and resting his hands on Rose's hips.

Teddy and all of the Weasley boys sneered at Tommy, which made Teddy smirk; at least he wasn't alone in disliking Tommy. However the moment passed and everyone started towards Quality Quidditch Supplies.

"Tommy, you go on," Rose told him, removing herself from his grip. "Teddy and I will catch up with you guys later."

Teddy raised his eyebrows as Rose walked over to him with a determined look in her eye. She grabbed onto his arm and dragged him away from the group and toward Fortescue's. Rose found a table and Teddy ordered the ice cream for them, as per their usual routine. When Teddy sat down at the table, Rose gave him a meaningful look.

"Teddy Lupin, what the hell was that about?" she asked with an eyebrow raised.

"What was what about, Rosie?" he countered evasively.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Ted Remus Lupin!" she said, scowling. "I saw your face when Vic mentioned marrying you and don't pretend that you didn't look horrified."

Teddy let out a big sigh, running a hand through his hair in frustration. Rose knew him too well.

"Okay, fine," he said grudgingly after a moment. "Vic's been hinting marriage and moving in together for the past couple months and it's freaking me the hell out! I don't want to marry her!"

Rose raised her eyebrows at his outburst but remained silent. Teddy flushed under her scrutinizing gaze.

"I don't know what to tell you, Teddy," she said quietly after a complete minute of silence. "I don't want to interfere with your relationship. I just know that you really don't seem happy right now and you deserve to be happy."

Teddy reached over and squeezed Rose's hand. "Thanks, Rosie."

"Anytime, Teddy," she replied, helping herself to her ice cream.

"Now, can we discuss something else?" Teddy asked warily. "While we're on the subject of relationships, that is."

Rose's expression immediately morphed into one of suspicion. "Sure."

"Well," Teddy began, not sure how to phrase what he was about to say to make sure Rose didn't start hexing him into the next century. "It's about Tommy."

"What about him?" Rose asked, a scowl starting to form on her face. "I thought you said you liked him."

"Well…I lied," Teddy said hesitantly, watching as Rose's glare turned even colder. "Well, I couldn't very well tell you I thought he was a prat, could I?"

"You don't even know him," Rose said defensively, her eyes flashing.

"I know he's much too handsy with you," Teddy retorted, feeling his temper rising. "I know that you're a _child_ and too young to have some bloke running his hands all over you in front of your family. I know that McNabb's a bloody prat and that no one in the family likes him! I—"

Rose laughed cruelly. "I knew you couldn't like him. You hate everyone who makes me happy who isn't in our family," she sneered, standing up. "I like Tommy and I _want_ him running his hands all over me, Teddy Lupin. If you were really my friend, you would support me and my decisions but apparently I don't know you as well as I thought I did. Please don't try to follow me out or talk to me after this."

Her voice had raised enough to attract the attention from everyone in the shop. She gave him one last glare before storming out into the street. Teddy groaned putting his face in his hands. He really mucked it up. Rose _hated_ being told what to do and having people question her decisions. That, along with the fact that she so highly valued loyalty and could hold a grudge longer than anyone he knew, meant she probably wouldn't be forgiving him anytime soon and that it was useless to go running after her.

Teddy threw some money on the table angrily and walked out of Fortesques. With Vic's bizarre obsession with making things more serious and Rose mad at him, he doubted he'd last a week.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

April 20th, 2021

Andromeda Tonks' funeral had been a somber affair, but then again, what funeral wasn't a somber affair? She had only been seventy (a relatively young age in the wizarding world) and it had been rather sudden, so it seemed to Teddy like people were extra upset. Nearly everyone had been very kind and supportive to him, which he appreciated. Everyone but Victoire.

"You've barely even spoken to me since it happened!" Vic screamed at him, still in her black dress from the funeral. "It's like you don't care about me anymore!"

Teddy sighed as he made his way through his flat, tugging at the tie around his neck. He had hoped to come home alone after the funeral to change for dinner at the Potters but Vic had Flooed to his flat the second he left.

Truth be told, Teddy had been purposefully ignoring Victoire. For the past week, he'd been a wreck and dealing with his overly needy girlfriend was the last thing he needed. He just didn't understand her. Did she forget that the woman who had raised Teddy after he had been orphaned just died? That had to be the only explanation because no one else in their right mind would insist that their grieving boyfriend take them out on a date the day of his grandmother's funeral.

He walked into his bedroom to grab a change of clothes with Vic following right behind him.

"I'm trying to talk to you!" Vic screeched, waving her hands around wildly. "Where are you going?"

"Out," Teddy replied dully, grabbing another pair of clothes for tomorrow. He might as well stay the night at Harry and Ginny's, since he didn't much feel like being home alone tonight.

"Out where?" she demanded. "Are you going to see that Riley whore that works with you? I knew it! I knew you were cheating on me!"

Teddy barely stopped himself from banging his head against the wall. One of Vic's irrational jealous tantrums was the last thing he wanted to deal with right now. He turned to her, feeling exhausted. She looked beautiful, but then again, she always did because of her Veela genes. But something about it felt off to him. Like it was a fake, bland sort of beautiful. Suddenly, the sight of her disgusted him and he couldn't take it anymore.

"Get out, Victoire," he said bluntly.

"Are you kidding?" she shrieked in an annoyingly high pitched voice. Merlin, did she always sound like that? "But Teddy—"

"I'm not kidding, Vic. I want you out of my flat."

"What's wrong with you, Teddy?" Vic asked, looking put-off and disgusted.

Teddy snapped.

"What's wrong with me is that I just got back from the funeral for the woman who raised me and you come barging in to accuse me of cheating on you!" he bellowed. "I've been a complete wreck for the past week but all you care about is me taking you shopping for bloody shoes that you don't even need! You've been a shit girlfriend the past week and you don't even care! Get out of my flat before I force you out!"

Teddy ended his rant, panting. They stared at each other for a few tense moments before Vic let out a frustrated scream before Apparating out of his flat. Rage flooded him and he grabbed the alarm clock from his nightstand and threw it at the wall, growling. He heard the Floo start up and he stormed into the living room. Merlin, couldn't Vic give it a break?

"I TOLD YOU TO GET THE FUCK OUT—"

He was startled by a girlish scream and it was then that he realized that it wasn't Victoire at all. Rose was standing there in her funeral clothes, with a shocked look on her face. Teddy's shoulders sagged.

"Oh," he said sheepishly. "Sorry, Rosie. I thought you were someone else."

Her eyebrows rose and she cocked her head to the side. "Is it safe you assume that you thought I was Victoire?" she asked after a moment, examining him carefully. "May I ask why you were so eager to scream at her?"

The next thing Teddy knew, he was sitting on the couch and huge sobs were wracking his body. He cried harder than on the night Grandmum had died. He cried harder than he had at the funeral. He cried harder than he ever had in his life.

This year had been such a bloody nightmare. He and Rose had been on shaky ground since the confrontation about Tommy McNabb and he really hadn't seen her before the night Grandmum had died. Victoire had been a crazy bitch most of the time. His boss at the Auror department hated his guts because he thought Teddy had only gotten the job because of Uncle Harry and Ron. And now Grandmum was dead.

When he finally had no more tears left to cry, he realized that Rose had been sitting next to him and rubbing his back comfortingly the whole time. He took a few shuddering breaths and rubbed the tears from his eyes, feeling suddenly awkward. This was the first time he'd been alone with Rose since the Tommy McNabb incident and he had gone and sobbed for twenty minutes. This wasn't exactly the way he was planning on making up with her. They sat there silently for a while, not looking at each other. Eventually, Rose spoke up.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, reaching for his hand.

Her tone told him that this was a loaded apology: that she wasn't only apologizing for his Grandmum's death, but also for his fight with Victoire and for the fact that they hadn't spoken in so long. Teddy squeezed her hand and finally looked at her. She gave him a smile and Teddy knew that their fight was finally over.

"So are you going to tell me why you were screaming when I first came over?" she asked in a gentle voice.

Teddy ran a hand over his face and sighed. "I finally had it with Victoire. She barely seems to care that Grandmum just died and kept insisting that I take her shopping or some bollocks like that," he explained. "She started yelling at me as soon as I got home and I lost it."

"I don't blame you for that and don't be sorry for it," Rose said fiercely, surprising him. "You're grieving and if she doesn't understand that then she doesn't deserve you."

Teddy's eyebrows shot up at this. Rose was impossibly kind most of the time, especially to her family, so hearing her speak like this about one of her cousins was shocking. She noticed the look he gave her and smiled slightly.

"Teddy—"

Rose was interrupted as the fireplace lit up. Teddy gaped as Victoire stepped out, looking madder than a hippogriff in a cage. Her eyes widen as she saw Rose and her glare got even deadlier. Teddy nearly shivered; it must be the Veela blood because Vic was right scary when she got really angry about something.

"What the hell, Teddy!" she yelled, her wand sparking in her hand. "You kick me out but you let _Rosie_ come over? You haven't even spoken in months!"

"Because you're a psychotic bitch and Rosie's not!" Teddy shot back, standing up. "Why don't you—"

"Teddy," Rose said warningly, standing up next to him and putting a hand on his arm. "Don't say anything you'll regret later."

An ugly sneer came across Victoire's face. "Yeah, Teddy. Why don't you listen to little Rosie over there," she said bitterly. "Because she's so much important than your own effing _girlfriend_! I'm leaving. This is bloody ridiculous!"

"Good!" Teddy yelled back at her. "It's not like I want you here anyway!"

Vic gave him another dirty look before Apparating away and Teddy was left to stare at the spot she had been in confusion. Why had she come back, anyway? To apologize or to scream at him some more? He really had no clue which one was more likely. And what was that weird jealousy all about? Sure, Rosie was his number one girl, but he loved them both in different ways; it wasn't a competition or anything. He was broken out of his reverie when Rose put a hand on his arm.

"Come on, Teddy," she said, standing up and pulling on him. "We're over at Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny's place for dinner and everyone is expecting you. Let's go."

Teddy let her pull him to the fireplace, grabbing his overnight bag as they went. He watched Rose fondly as she bossily grabbed a handful of Floo powder and sent them off to Godric's Hollow. As they stepped out of the fireplace at the Potters' home, Teddy pulled Rose to him and gave her a hug.

"Thanks, Rosie," he said gruffly.

She pulled away slightly and smiled at him before standing up on her tiptoes to give him a peck on the cheek. "Anytime, Teddy."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry that I've been MIA for so long. I've had a crazy year of traveling and family emergencies and school and two computers crashing and losing all my material. Hopefully as my winter break from school is coming up, I'll be able to post a few new chapters and get the momentum back with this story. Thank you so much for all your feedback and thank you so much for reading! I seriously appreciate it! :)<strong>


End file.
